Even after all these years
by Jahshasha
Summary: After 10 years Tristan and Rory still think about each other, and when they get the chance to be together, how are they going to handle it? Please R&R Updated AGAIN! that's twice in 2 days!
1. Back in Stars Hollow

Rory smiled as she entered Stars Hollow. It had been more than ten years since she'd moved out of there, but it had barely changed. There was some new people, some older people, but essentially it was the same. So much the same that Rory felt that she could walk into Doose's market and still see Dean stacking shelves, or into Luke's and see Jess sullenly serving people and her mother arguing her way into that last cup of coffee. Well the last part just may happen, it was just more likely to happen at 'The Crap- Shack', where Luke had moved into after the two of them had gotten married.  
  
Rory stepped up to her old house, smiling at the fact that her mother still hadn't installed steps, Grandma mustn't come visit that much… she thought to herself, or else she would have insisted that there was some suitable steps put in…  
  
"Babe! You're finally here!" she heard her mother shout from the door.  
  
Rory looked up to find her mother standing in the doorway, with a huge grin on her face while from behind her walked Luke, trying to restrain a giant Labrador that the two had bought instead of having more children. By the time the two of them had finally gotten together, they had both decided they didn't want any more children.  
  
As Lorelai ran towards her daughter and pulled her into a huge hug whilst Luke closed the dog inside the house. "That one's just a little excited about visitors… so's the dog come to think of it." Lorelai stuck her tongue out at him, "Welcome home Rory. We're still unclear about how long you're staying for."  
  
"Just a few days, I don't have long off work but I just wanted to come home and see you all."  
  
"We're going to a party at your Grandmother's tomorrow for a party," Lorelai said, "unless, you know, you're feeling pretty tired and just can't make it, and then we can make it a family night and just not go."  
  
"I'm fine to go, I haven't seen Grandma and Grandpa in ages."  
  
"Damn! Are you sure? I mean, we'd all understand if you don't feel up to it."  
  
"Let's go Mom!"  
  
"Please Rory!"  
  
*The Next Night*  
  
Rory walked through the party, enjoying it more than she would of in her earlier years, but not really enjoying it completely.  
  
"Rory?"  
  
Rory turned around and saw the professional looking woman standing next to a tall, amazingly handsome man, and she had to stare for almost a full minute before she could identify the woman as Paris. Rory couldn't place her finger on why, but Paris had changed an amazing amount.  
  
"Paris Geller, I haven't seen you since I left Harvard! How are you!"  
  
"Paris Geller-Owens actually. I'm good, and this is David, he's also good, at least, I think so. Are you good?"  
  
The man beside her smiled at her, "I'm perfectly happy baby," he said and gave her a small kiss on the lips.  
  
"David, this is Rory, she and I went to Chilton together, and then to Harvard."  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you Rory," he said as he shook her hand, "I'm going to go get us a drink, ok?"  
  
"Sounds like a plan," she said after she kissed David back.  
  
It was then Rory could see exactly why Paris was so changed, she was happier than Rory had ever seen her. She was so happy she was practically glowing. Love suited Paris.  
  
"You look so great Paris!" Rory exclaimed, "and you're man is certainly a handsome one, where'd ya find him? I think I might go line up there tomorrow."  
  
"I take it you're single," she said, and added, "you can't have him," with a joviality and security that made Rory think of the way she said things that meant the same thing, but in a completely opposite way during their teenage years when talking about Tristan. She frowned and banished the unwanted visitor from her mind, as she had had to do quite a few times recently, much to her dismay.  
  
"Where are you living right now?" Rory asked Paris.  
  
"Actually, we moved back to Hartford recently, we're kind of starting a family and we wanted a family home."  
  
Rory looked down at Paris stomach and then back up to her face, "then you're…?"  
  
"Pregnant. Yes." Apparently it wasn't just love that made Paris glow. "Where are you living right now? I haven't seen you at any social events until now, so I assume it's not around here."  
  
"You assume right, I'm in New York, doing some writing."  
  
"Doesn't Tristan live in New York sweetie?" asked David as he returned, handing Paris a drink.  
  
She smiled and took the offered cup, "thank you, and yeah, I think he does, you should visit him Rory, I'm sure he'd be thrilled to see you again. I can give you the address if you want?"  
  
Rory nearly hit her head against a wall, she had been trying to stop thinking about Tristan, but now that she knew that he was living in her city, even if the city was a very big city, she would never be able to stop thinking about it. "That address would be nice," she heard herself say before she could stop. At least if she had the address then she could choose to contact him if she wanted to.  
  
Rory took the phone number and address, as well as Paris' phone number and address, and talked with Paris some more for the evening before heading home, unsure of whether to talk to Tristan again.  
  
The last time she had seen him was just after she had graduated. He had come home for the summer before college and they had met again at a party; he seemed a little bit more mature, but essentially the same. But talking to him there had made Rory realize how much she had missed their little sparring matches, and she had always wanted to get in touch with him but had never had the guts to do it. Maybe this way she could work it up slowly, and as soon as she made up her mind to call him, she could, without loosing her nerve. Rory smiled at her plan before falling asleep. 


	2. Talking again

Rory sat in her study reading. It had been two weeks since she had been at the party in Hartford, and she still hadn't contacted Tristan. Every time she had been about to call him, she had lost her nerve. The closest she had come was dialing the first four digits of his number. Why am I so nervous about this?? It's not like it's a really big deal, I just have to call him, maybe go out for coffee, and just catch up. That's all I want to do…  
  
"Arghhh! This is SO stupid!" she screamed at the wall, "what is wrong with me??"  
  
She grabbed her bag and decided to go for a walk. She wasn't able to concentrate on the book anyway, so what was the point in pretending to read it?  
  
*Three Hours Later*  
  
Rory had gone and met with Lane at a coffee shop and had tried talking out her problems. Lane was now living near Rory with her boyfriend of two years, and although Lane's mother had no idea that they were living together, she knew they were dating and approved of him.  
  
As they were walking into Rory's apartment, Lane had ordered Rory to call Tristan, "if he's in your thoughts that much, there must be more to you two than what me to believe."  
  
"We were barely even friends, if that, it's just that… I don't know, I'm curious."  
  
Lane smiled at her, "so call him!"  
  
"Ok, ok, I'll call him," she said and walked to the phone. She saw that she had a message and pressed the button, "Hey, uhh, Rory, this is Tristan." Lane and Rory turned to each other in shock, "Paris was telling me that we're in the same city and I thought that we could maybe get together some time, you know… just to catch up on old times, or whatever. Well, I hope to talk to you later, bye."  
  
"Oh-Mi-God! Now you HAVE to call him!" Lane squealed in her ear.  
  
Rory bit her lip, "but he just called, won't me calling him back straight away seem like I'm really desperate to talk to him or something?"  
  
"Or that you just went out for a walk with your best friend on a Saturday and thought one of the best ways to relax would be to talk to an old friend, or, whatever you want to call him."  
  
Rory smiled, and picked up the phone, quickly dialing the number she had managed to learn by heart before she lost her nerve.  
  
"Hello?" the voice on the other side asked.  
  
"Tristan? It's Rory."  
  
"Rory, hey, how are you doing? It's great to hear your voice."  
  
"It's great to hear your voice too," she said back, smiling at Lane. Lane grinned and left the apartment with a wave.  
  
*Two hours later*  
  
Rory couldn't believe they had been talking for two hours straight, and about nothing in particular. They had talked about their jobs and books and movies, and they had started in on their past memories, but they hadn't really got to talking about romance as yet. Rory was so eager to find out if he was single, but didn't have the guts to ask him.  
  
"I'm still really sorry about leaving you to play Juliet without a Romeo."  
  
"It's cool, Paris played Romeo."  
  
"So I heard, I bet that would have made Dean happy, uhh… if you don't mind me asking, whatever happened to him?"  
  
"We broke up during college. We had just gotten to the stage where we were more of friends than partners. We're still really good friends now, he's got, like, three kids under five, and his wife is pregnant again."  
  
"Seems to be going around doesn't it?"  
  
"Although pregnancy does seem to suit Paris, doesn't it?" Rory said, kind of disappointed at the change of subject – she was itching to know what was going on with him romance-wise, and the topic of Dean may have lead that way without seeming obvious.  
  
"It really does, she looks fantastic, doesn't she?"  
  
Before Rory could agree, she heard a crash on the other line, "Jesus, uhh, I have to go, but I'll see you for lunch tomorrow?" he asked, referring to the meeting they had arranged earlier.  
  
"Sounds great, bye."  
  
"Bye," he said, then hung up.  
  
Rory put the phone down and sat next to it, nearly missing the chair as she sat down. This was amazing! She was going to see him tomorrow. She dialed Lane's number, "Hello?" a man answered.  
  
"Simon, hey, it's Rory, is Lane there," she asked quickly.  
  
"Rory, hi, and yes, Lane is right in front of me jumping up at the phone, I'm thinking I'll wait a little while just to make her sweat, hmm?"  
  
Rory heard a scuffle and the distinct sound of Simon yelping followed by, "Rory, are you there? What happened? Why didn't you call me as soon as you hung up with him?"  
  
"I did, we just hung up then."  
  
"Oh-Mi-God! You guys talked for two hours, wow! What did you talk about? What happened?"  
  
"We talked about everything, and I'm going over to see him tomorrow, we're going to have lunch together."  
  
She removed the phone from her ear and held it at arms length while Lane screamed. "Are you done?" she asked when the sound had died down.  
  
"Yes, I'm done! So, what are you going to wear? Are you going for casually sexy, or all out vixen?"  
  
"I'm not going for either!" she replied indignantly.  
  
"But, you want to seduce him don't you?"  
  
"No I do NOT want to seduce him! I'm just meeting with an old friend!"  
  
"Sure, that's what they all say…"  
  
Rory discussed the lunch at length with Lane, and finally decided that she would aim for neat, but sexy, but like she had just happened to pick that outfit, not that she was trying to look sexy. Rory could feel the nervousness building up in her, he wouldn't have invited her for lunch or talked that long if he was seriously with someone would he? But maybe when she turned up for lunch his perfect wife would be there, and she would be all awkward and third wheely.  
  
Why am I stressing about this? I don't want to be anything more than friends do I? How can I be this obsessed over someone I haven't seen in more than 10 years??! This is absurd Gilmore!  
  
Rory sat stressing until around tea time, when Lane and Simon came over, with Simon watching TV while Lane picked out what she was going to wear. 


	3. Meeting again

Rory was about to ring the bell to Tristan's place when a woman about the same age, with long curly brown hair stepped next to her, key in hand. "Are you here to see Tristan?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, I'm meant to meet him this morning, I'm Rory," she said as she offered her hand to shake.  
  
"He said you would be coming round. I'm Catherine, but everyone calls me Cookie," she answered as she accepted the offered hand.  
  
With that she opened the door and ushered her inside.  
  
As soon as they stepped inside Cookie started calling in the direction of what was obviously bedrooms. "Tristan! It's eleven in the morning, why aren't you up yet?! Damo, Gwen and Viv, you had better be up and dressed – I'm leaving in ten minutes with or without you."  
  
Three children in various states of undress came stumbling into the room, "Sorry Mom, but you know that Dad let us watch a movie late last night and we all slept in," said the oldest, a boy of about seven or eight. The two other girls, one about six, and another about four, stood looking as innocent as they could manage.  
  
"Why are you still talking? Why aren't you getting dressed? You only have eight minutes left." With that they ran of to their rooms.  
  
"Cook, do you really think it necessary to yell at such an hour of the morning?" Rory turned to face a barely dressed Tristan, now older and more mature looking, but still as good looking as always. "I hardly think that's good manners – Rory! Oh God! Uhhh… Hi"  
  
"Hi," she replied, and, as much as it was hard to do with this man standing in front of her, wearing only boxers shorts, she kept her eyes on her feet.  
  
"I'd better get dressed." He said as he left from the room.  
  
Rory just knew her face was incredibly red and she tried to keep her face out of view from the woman standing beside her, the mother of Tristan's children, and, quite obviously, his wife.  
  
"Good Lord! How can he think to lecture me about bad manners when he comes out of his room in front of company dressed like *that*! The man is insufferable!"  
  
"That's what I always found when we went to school together."  
  
"That's right, you guys went to school together, so I'll take it he hasn't changed, then. He was as bad then as he is now?"  
  
"I don't know him really well now, and I can only really judge from a conversation on the phone, but I would say he was worse then," she told Cookie with a smile.  
  
"Did you really know me back then, Mary?"  
  
He was back. His blonde good looks, and small smirk made her heart beat faster than it should be and she was struck with the sudden feeling that she shouldn't have come. She was going to spend the whole time she was here lusting after a married man, a man married to a woman who, although loud, seemed nice and that Rory could see herself becoming friends with.  
  
"I see you've matured so much, Tristan."  
  
"I don't really see the value in it, really. And the kiddies seem to like it."  
  
With that, the three children came out all dressed and ready for what looked like a day of Sunday sport.  
  
"We're heading of now," Cookie said to Tristan, "be a good boy," she grinned at him as she gave a gentle slap to his cheek. She turned to Rory, "it was a pleasure meeting you, and I'm very sorry that you'll have to put up with this buffoon. I'll pray for you. Let's go kids!"  
  
They ran out the door, with screams of, "I bags the front seat!" following.  
  
"Kids," Tristan laughed.  
  
"Cookie seemed nice," Rory said, hoping that starting a conversation about 'the wife' would help keep her mind of how good he looked.  
  
"She can be – if she wants too."  
  
"Well, she must have wanted too, because she was nice. Not the kind of girl I always thought you'd marry, but nice."  
  
"You thought about who I would marry?"  
  
"Well, you know, when I heard Paris talk about you, I wondered if you would have a wife and what she would be like."  
  
Tristan steered Rory to the couch, "ex-wife."  
  
"Really?" Rory asked, cursing God for making her voice sound almost as happy as she felt at that news.  
  
Tristan smiled and sat close to her, "Really. We're still good friends and all, but we split about three years ago."  
  
"Oh." Rory smiled inwardly. He wasn't married, so in her dreams when Tristan wanted to be with her, she wasn't going to be that terrible woman enticing a married man.  
  
  
  
Authors note: I know this is a bit of an odd place to stop, but I wanted to get this part up. And I wanted to change the point of views, I'm thinking that the next part is going to be in Tristan's POV(just a thought, I may change my mind). I hope you're enjoying my fic, it's really fun to write! 


	4. Tristan's thoughts

Ok, this took forever and I'm really sorry, but I do hope you like it. It's Tristans POV and I'm hoping to clean up all the fuss about Cookie, cos some people said they were confused in the reviews - which reminds me, thanks SO MUCH to everyone who reviewed. It made me dance in happiness. :) Please review if you like this part! ~~~ Tristan closed the door behind Rory many hours after she had arrived for her visit. Once they had started talking - well, lunch turned into afternoon tea, which turned into dinner, which turned into supper until it was ten o'clock before she actually got going. He was psyched, it had been amazing talking to her, and he hadn't missed the way her voice had seemed and the look on her face when he told her that he and Cookie were no longer married.  
  
The truth was that he and Cookie had never really loved each other that way. She had fantastic connections and lots of money, much like him, and their parents were forever throwing them together with oh-so-subtle remarks like "you and Cookie might like to take a walk for awhile, it's beautiful out" and "your personalities mesh so well. We can't understand why you don't spend more time together?" They were both so tired of being thrown together, and the fact that neither of them seemed to be able to find the perfect person to be with, so they settled with each other.  
  
Their personalities did mesh well, with her brisk, loud and slightly sadistic manner perfectly clicking with his laid back, smug and slightly sadistic manner. But they only ever really meshed as friends, and three years back they had decided that staying married was only rubbing the nerves raw and that if they stayed together they would hate each other, which was definitely something neither of them wanted, so they split. Cookie, the perfect mother, had the kids during the week while they stayed with Tristan on weekends, which the kids didn't mind because they lived so close together that if they really needed to go to their other home they could walk there in five minutes.  
  
The phone rang and he picked it up, knowing without checking that it was Cookie, who called around this time every Sunday if they hadn't done the weekly check-up, and because she got bored when the kids went to bed and they were still good friends. "Hello Cookie."  
  
"Hello Puppy, how were they this weekend?"  
  
"Little angels, as always."  
  
"So they broke another window?"  
  
He laughed. He knew that he wasn't quite as good as keeping an eye on the three of them as Cookie, who baby-sat for ten other kids regularly, was, and things often ended up getting broken. "They only broke a few mugs."  
  
"How many times have I told you to give them plastic cups instead of porcelain or glass?"  
  
"But every time you start lecturing me about how to look after them it's like everything around me gets brighter and more interesting, and I have to pay more attention to the carpet. it's like, calling for me."  
  
He could practically hear her raising her eyebrow at him, "Dickhead. How did your meeting with that lovely young woman I met today go? Have you managed to seduce her yet?"  
  
"Could you keep your mind out of the gutter? I was merely catching up with an old school chum, nothing more."  
  
"Yes, and I believe you. I could practically smell the sexual tension between you two. Tell me the story behind it. Did ya get it on? Was there a tumultuous relationship between you?"  
  
"Neither. We were. well, kinda friends. I mean, she really didn't like me all that much."  
  
"Let me take a guess, you wanted her, but she was the only girl in Chilton intelligent enough to turn you down?"  
  
"Something like that."  
  
"I knew it! Woo! Points for me! And I'll take another guess and say you were deliriously happy about the way she was looking at you this morning when you so gracefully entered the room in that amazing outfit that barely managed to cover the bits you should have been covering?"  
  
"She wasn't even looking at me! She was looking at her feet."  
  
"She wanted to jump you then and there; did you see how red she got? It was obvious to anyone with half a brain that she was not thinking chaste thoughts about you."  
  
He thought he had imagined that look. The thought that she might have been attracted to him made him much happier than he should have been.  
  
When he didn't say anything for awhile Cookie took it as an invitation to voice her opinions, not that she really needed an invitation, "So if she wants you, and you want her, as is so obvious to me, then you should do something about it. In my advice, don't dance around it with her, tell her you want her and let nature take its course."  
  
He knew better than to try and argue his way out of admitting that he liked her, Cookie knew him too well for that and she'd get angry at fruitless arguing. "I tried the open approach in high school, and it did not go over well."  
  
"Bull! You probably tried the 'I'm a rich boy and I get everything I want including gorgeous, sweet and intelligent girls who already have a boyfriend' approach. She did already have a boyfriend right?"  
  
"Maybe."  
  
"Maybe?"  
  
"Ok yes, she had a boyfriend who was perfect for her."  
  
"He isn't still in the picture is he?"  
  
"No, no he's not."  
  
"Well then you have to make a move, and an actual one that isn't revolting, like the moves you used to make on me when we were kids. I wasn't impressed by your wealth, and she probably won't be either."  
  
"They are NOT that bad!"  
  
"They are really real- I have to go, I think Viv just woke up. I'll finish this later."  
  
"Bye."  
  
"Cya." 


	5. Bringing in the Jessbut in a good way

This one's from Rory's POV again, that's what the story is mainly going to be, with (as was the last chapter) a few different ones every now and again. A HUGE thanks to all those who reviewed, you all rock! (especially those who like Cookie, I think she's fun and childish and all(as comes out in her language!) (and Alura, cos she added the extra 'sha's).  
  
As you can see, my phone conversations are mainly all dialogue, cos I think its fun. The main part of this is going to be a phone conversations - sorry, but I'll try and add in enough names and stuff so that you know who's talking at the time.  
  
*Part 5*  
  
It was the Thursday after Rory's 'lunch' with Tristan and they hadn't talked yet. Rory was afraid to call him, but at Lane's assistance, she was going to call him tonight and arrange. something. The thing that scared Rory was that she knew it had shown how attracted to him she was, and she didn't want to seem like she was chasing after him, she wasn't interested in that kind of relationship. was she.  
  
The phone rang and Rory leapt to it in the hope that it was Tristan. "Hello?"  
  
"You sound a little eager. What's his name?"  
  
"There's no guy."  
  
"You're into girls now?"  
  
"Jess! Could you be any cruder? Or any more immature?"  
  
"Sorry, I'm back in Stars Hollow and I've been spending too much time with your mother - who, by-the-way, tells me that there IS a guy. a certain, shall we say, evil yet magnificently attractive (her words not mine) school 'friend'?"  
  
"How the hell did she know?"  
  
"So it's true?"  
  
"I didn't say that!"  
  
"Yes you did."  
  
"Well. maybe I did, and he's not that gorgeous," and all the while the little voice in her head was singing, 'Liar, Liar.'  
  
"Not what your mother said."  
  
"What does she know anyway? She's never even met him."  
  
"Paris sent her pictures."  
  
"You're kidding me? Paris? When did she speak to my mother?"  
  
"Some luncheon thing that your grandmother made your mother(and Luke) attend. Paris mentioned the fact that the two of you were talking and Lorelai, being Lorelai, made her send pictures and any info she could find. By the way, after a man with an ex and children? That must be fun."  
  
"When did all this happen?"  
  
"Yesterday."  
  
"So Miss Patty has the pictures plastered all over Stars Hollow? Dammit!"  
  
"Afraid so. Paris also told Lorelai about your Sunday lunch, or dinner, or supper, or potential-lover-pre-flirting, or whatever it was."  
  
"I am going to murder that woman."  
  
"Which one? Anyway, I must say, you have found yourself some catch. According to all the women in the town he is remarkably attractive, and according to Paris, rich, charming and intelligent."  
  
"She forgot to tell you smug, occasionally sleazy, and not interested in the likes of little old me."  
  
"Paris told your mother that his ex-wife seems to think that he worships you, which, knowing the effect you have on the male population, seems very likely."  
  
Rory rolled her eyes at this. Jess may have once been smitten with her, but their short relationship was enough to threaten the friendship they had developed. Luckily at that time college was near enough to force them to admit that their relationship wouldn't survive, especially not with the distance that was put between them. The idea that Tristan was now feeling the same thing was, while exhilarating, not a real possibility. He had once flirted with her, but even in her crush-induced haze on Sunday, she could see that he really only wanted friendship.  
  
"Enough! Let's leave this subject alone. Who's the newest girly in Jess's world currently?"  
  
"One: they're women, not girlys, two: I'm as free as a bird right now. The only women I seem to find are these weak little things that seem to think that if they look as helpless as possible I'll fall madly in love. It's getting on my nerves."  
  
"You should come visit me in New York. I know you miss this place and the women here are anything but weak."  
  
"Be careful, I'll take you up on that offer. I'm currently un-employed, by my own choice I will say, and you could give me a place to stay that doesn't involve my uncle and your crazy mother."  
  
"Then do it. You can come up and judge Tristan for yourself."  
  
"Then you're really interested in him?"  
  
"Yeah, ok, I am," she grudgingly admitted. "Not that it'll do me a lot of good, he has yet to call after Sunday's whatever it was."  
  
"Have you called him?"  
  
"No, I'm scared."  
  
"Well? If you're scared but you like him."  
  
"He's not the type to get scared about calling up women, especially me."  
  
"Don't be so quick to judge. And I'll be at your place on Saturday."  
  
"Did you want to check if I was busy?"  
  
"Nope. Your mother wants on, so I'll talk to you later."  
  
"Bye."  
  
"Rory? Hey baby."  
  
"Hi Mom."  
  
Rory talked with her mother for about half an hour, mostly about Tristan, until she got call waiting.  
  
"You get that, I have to go anyway. Bye Rory."  
  
"Bye Mom."  
  
She pressed the call waiting button, "hello?"  
  
"Rory?"  
  
"Tristan. Hi."  
  
"Hi." 


	6. Yet another phone conversation

Ok, it's yet ANOTHER phone conversation. I'm sorry, but I want this story to move faster, and this made things easier. Plus I wanted to finish the conversation that was started earlier. Thankyou SO much to everyone who reviewed, again I'm bowing down to you, especially to people who keep reviewing to tell me what they think - Crissy and Klm111a are two who come to mind - keep up with the feedback, it's been great. Remember to keep reviewing, cos I love getting them!  
  
*Part 6*  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Rory?"  
  
"Tristan. Hi."  
  
"Hi. Am I disturbing anything?"  
  
"A phone conversation with my mother that I have a feeling was about to go to a place I don't want it too. Just let me say goodbye and I'll be right with you."  
  
"Kay."  
  
Rory clicked the call waiting button to get back on the phone to her mother. "Uhh. Mom?"  
  
"You had better not be hanging up on me. You are, aren't you? Who is this person who's more important to than the person who gave you life?" she heard her mother ask indignantly.  
  
"He isn't more important, but we have been talking a while and I am going to call you later, and you're the one who said I should call Tristan-"  
  
"It's Tristan! Oh! Oh! Can you put us on three-way calling?"  
  
"No, I really don't think you talking to Tristan would be a good thing."  
  
"Meanie. You have to call me back straight after and tell me what he said. Miss Patty will pay good money for this. Ok, I'm going now, but I'm expecting a call soon, although, according to Lane you talked for two hours last time."  
  
"You talked to Lane about me? You know what, I really don't care. I'll talk to you later."  
  
She clicked the call waiting button before Lorelai could say another word. "Tristan?"  
  
"Hey, you really didn't have to get rid of your mother for me, I could have called back."  
  
"You were doing me a favor, trust me, and that phone conversation could have gone on for another three hours."  
  
"My phone conversations with my mother are lucky to go over the three minute mark."  
  
"She likes to talk. just ask Luke."  
  
"Luke?"  
  
"Her husband. He runs the dinner where we used to eat every day and they used to banter a lot, until they finally did that whole clichéd passionate- kiss-in-the-middle-of-a-fight thing. They're complete opposites but they manage not to kill each other. unless you count the fact that Luke is constantly making her coffee, and he claims that that will kill her one day."  
  
"Well, anyway, as much as this is interesting, I actually didn't call to talk about Stars Hollow and your mother."  
  
"Really? I thought that was why everyone called."  
  
"And here I was thinking you were intelligent."  
  
"It's a mistake that many make."  
  
"And only fueled by the fact that you graduated from Harvard."  
  
"But it's really only an elaborate ruse."  
  
"Which is the best kind of ruse."  
  
"Way better than a simple ruse."  
  
"And we're of the track again."  
  
"Well, the fact that I have no clue as to what the track is certainly doesn't help."  
  
"That's why I called, to tell you of the track."  
  
"Is it a pretty track?"  
  
"Of course, it has ducks and a lake and laughter and comes in the form of this friendly picnic I do with some friends every year, and was wondering if you would like to come. Are you busy Sunday?"  
  
"I do have a friend coming to stay with me, could he come? Because I wouldn't really know anyone there and then I won't be nervous."  
  
Rory heard a pause before, "sure, he can come. But Cookie will be there, and you have met her, if only briefly but that will be enough for her to babble aimlessly to you for hours on end."  
  
"And with my mother as a role model, I'm certainly able to babble back just as aimlessly."  
  
"Should be a fun conversation then."  
  
"I think so."  
  
"Well, anyway, I'll give you the address and stuff, it's on at 12:00 Sunday, bring something for lunch."  
  
They talked for another hour after that, before Tristan had to leave to go to his son's school for some play or something, and Rory hung up feeling happy. She dialed her mothers number.  
  
"You guys talked for over an hour. There's something there! Like in the song from 'Beauty and the Beast', only he isn't a big huge monster, but you are a beautiful book worm and stuff." Rory groaned as her mother started to sing "there's something sweet. and almost kind."  
  
"Mother, we share exactly the same talents when it comes to singing - that is to say, none."  
  
"'I wonder why I didn't see it there before'- Luke stop, I'm allowed to sing to my daughter. I gave birth to her, I can serenade her."  
  
Rory heard a struggle for the phone and then Luke's voice, "I'm sorry Rory, I really shouldn't have given her that last cup of coffee, but she can be very annoying when she wants. She has to leave anyway (Rory distinctly heard a "she is the cat's mother" in the background), and will call you later."  
  
"Bye Luke, bye Mom."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Rory sat staring at the phone, smiling at her mother and step-father. Life was looking good.  
  
*Authors Note*  
  
Next part is at the park, no phone dialogue! Yay! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review! I thrive on them! Really, I'm forever checking to see if there's more, and if there is I get all excited and jump up and down and it puts me on a happy for the rest of the day so by just doing a little review you can make someone happy and that's a good thing and I'll stop now. 


	7. The picnic and almost kiss

Someone asked for a summary of what has happened before this part so here goes: After high school Tristan got married, had three children (Damien, Gwen and Vivien), but then got divorced. He is still friends with his ex- wife (Cookie). Rory had dated Jess, but they had broken up and were still friends if only because it would be awkward after Luke and Lorelai had gotten married. Paris had hooked Rory and Tristan up again and they are flirting with each other but nothing has happened. Jess is coming to visit, and the two of them are going to a picnic with Tristan and his friends.  
  
Anywho, thanks again to reviewers: Kou Shun'u, I didn't have to skip work/school, I'm on holidays right now, so I could write this - thanks for your cool review. ON WITH THE STORY!  
  
***Tristan's POV***  
  
Tristan walked into the park he had gotten to know so well surrounded by his three children and ex-wife, and usually when he came to these picnics he was all smiles but this time something was different.  
  
He had thought that Rory was single, he had asked about Dean and she had said they weren't dating, and she had acted single. He even thought that she had been flirting with him a few times, but now she was bringing a guy to his picnic. What was he meant to say when she asked if she could bring a 'friend' who was staying with her? Take back the invitation? Say that it was only for her? That would have been too obvious. He was just going to have to deal.  
  
"You really just assumed that she was single?" Cookie asked him.  
  
"Well, you said she was flirting, and neither she or Paris mentioned it."  
  
Cookie smiled, "are you sure she's dating him? He could just be a friend."  
  
"Who's staying with her? I don't think so."  
  
Cookie raised an eyebrow, mumbled a 'whatever' and then turned around to Vivien, who was currently sitting in the mud, "sweetie, take your shoes and socks off before you sit in the mud, at least make some effort not to drive Mommy crazy. Come on, I'll go put you in a change of clothes."  
  
As Cookie and his youngest walked off to the toilets he started grabbing baskets out of the car. This picnic had become tradition with all his friends, and he and Cookie still came together, if only because it made things easier on them. He wasn't kidding when he told Rory that they were still friends. It had taken a bit of time after the divorce, trying to let things simmer down, but they were now back to the place they were before embarking on the disaster that was their marriage; really good friends. In fact, right now, he would call her his best friend.  
  
"Tristan!"  
  
He turned around and saw Rory walking towards him, and of course, she had the light shining behind her in a way that made her seem like an angel. The man beside her, in contrast, was walking in the shade making him seem very dark beside Rory.  
  
"This is Jess Mariano, a friend of mine from home, Jess, this is Tristan DuGrey."  
  
With a "hi" Tristan stuck his hand out and Jess shook it with a grunt, that, although friendly, was still a grunt. Tristan raised his eyebrow at him.  
  
"I'm going to go get our stuff from the car," Rory said.  
  
"I'll go," Jess said, speaking for the first time, "you wanna help me Tristan?"  
  
Tristan idly wondered where that had come from before answering "sure."  
  
When they got to the car Jess turned to him and spoke, "we aren't dating, she is single."  
  
"You- I never asked if you were."  
  
"But you were wondering, and we aren't. Just don't hurt her."  
  
They stood looking at each other for a while before Jess smiled at him, "let's get going."  
  
Tristan nearly skipped back to his friends, all his stressing was about nothing, Rory was single, and this Jess guy was just a friend.  
  
When they got to the picnic blankets that had been det up Rory was already in a conversation with Cookie and Tina. Tristan was glad that Cookie was including Rory, and making her feel welcome.  
  
"Hi Tristan!" he heard from several of his friends.  
  
"Hey guys. I think most of you have been introduced to an old school friend of mine, Rory Gilmore, and this is her friend Jess Mariano."  
  
With warm hellos space was cleared on the blankets as people started setting out food to be eaten.  
  
*3 hours later*  
  
Everyone sat quietly talking to each other, even the children. Gwen sat snuggled on Tristan's lap, already tired from the running and swimming and whatever else she had been doing, and Viv sat on Rory's lap quite comfortably. Cookie and Jess had started getting along quite well and were sitting apart from them playing poker, although Jess had already expressed that he was used to playing poker with Rory and her mother, and that he was unused to playing with someone who played by the rules.  
  
Earlier, Tristan had come very close to kissing Rory, but it had been ruined by Damien falling over and taking half the drinks with him. They had been talking together, talking about everything, and the way she was looking at him made him think that she wouldn't object to the kiss. She was laughing at his jokes and the fact that they had just been sitting and talking for almost an hour, to the point of ignoring everyone else, surely meant something.  
  
She had just said how much she liked him now that he was away from their High School, and that he had changed for the better before he realised that they were sitting very close to each other. So close, in fact, that if he leaned forward just a small bit, they would be kissing, he had just started to move forward, ignoring the fact that his children could be watching, when Damien had fallen.  
  
They had both been flustered afterwards, and both Cookie and Jess were smiling at them, but nothing was said.  
  
*Author's Note* I will love you if you review. Tell me anything; constructive criticism, if you like the story, what you think should happen = that last one would be very handy cos I want the story to go where you want it to go, so tell me! 


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